SECTOR 1 1.5 Print publications are not required to obtain permission to publish from state authorities In general, print publications have to be registered. An exception – in accordance with the Press Law (Article 24) – are publications with a print-run of fewer than 500 copies; these are exempted from registration. However, one panellist mentioned that there are bureaucratic-administrative barriers to the benefit of not obtaining prior authorisation for print media whose circulation does not exceed 500 copies. Panellists agreed that the government should abandon the obligation of prior registration for the written press in general, (regardless of the print-run) in harmony with international best practice. Those creating new titles should only be required to inform the government institutions of their existence, address and editorial lines and policies. Scores: Individual scores: 1 Country does not meet indicator 2 Country meets only a few aspects of indicator 3 Country meets some aspects of indicator 4 Country meets most aspects of indicator 5 Country meets all aspects of the indicator Average score: Score of previous years: ✓ ✓✓✓ ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓✓ ✓ 1.9 2005=n/a; 2007=n/a; 2009=4.6; 2011=4.6; 2014=4.3 1.6 Confidential sources of information are protected by the legislation and/or the courts Confidential information sources in Mozambique are protected by law and the courts, with no reports, for instance, of situations in which a court forced a journalist to reveal his/her information sources. In fact, the Press Law refers to professional secrecy (Article 30), which states that journalists have no obligation to reveal their information sources. However, panellists mentioned that some sections of the justice sector find this norm excessive and contrary to international best practices and the supreme interests of the state, especially in cases where crimes against state security are at stake. On the other hand and for citizens in general, the country has a Law for the Protection of Victims, Whistle-blowers, Witnesses, Declarers and Experts (Law nº 15/2012 of 14 August), by which citizens in those situations have the right to protect the confidentiality of their information sources. Nevertheless, the panel mentioned that whistle-blowers often find themselves inexplicably exposed, as in the Mozambique Airports Case (Caso Aeroportos de Moçambique) where 16 AFRICAN MEDIA BAROMETER MOZAMBIQUE 2018